Re: Drugs online mostly cheaper

I am going to be entering the pharmacy field in a few months and I
wanted to hear your opinion on how these online pharmacies will affect
commercial pharmacy use? Did I just get a degree in something that
will eventually be obsolete?

Jasbird <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message news:<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>...
> Dependable online pharmacies that have been there for a while are
> recommended but fly-by-night pharmacies that send you spam are to be
> avoided.
> 
> This caught my eye because there has been a lot of fuss recently over
> spam advertising drugs and buying prescription drugs mail order (using
> the net). I was looking for a positive internet drugs story and here
> it is.
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> <http://www.sltrib.com/2003/Oct/10272003/monday/105829.asp>
> Drugs online mostly cheaper 
> 
> By Sameh Fahmy 
> The Tennessean 
> 
> To save money on prescription drugs, drive right past the large chain
> pharmacies and log onto online pharmacies. 
> 
> That's according to Consumer Reports. The magazine checked prices at
> 130 pharmacies and found that online pharmacies and big retailers such
> as Costco, Target and Wal-Mart offered the lowest prices, followed by
> supermarkets and independent pharmacies. The most expensive pharmacies
> were the large chains such as CVS, Eckerd and Walgreens. 
> 
> "If you shop around, you can get a good deal and save an enormous
> amount of money," says Tod Marks, senior editor for Consumer Reports. 
> 
> The magazine picked five common drugs -- Celebrex, Lipitor, Norvasc,
> Prevacid and Zoloft -- and the total cost was anywhere from $377 to
> $555, depending on where you shop. 
> 
> The Web sites with the cheapest drugs were Familymeds.com, Costco.com
> (which charges a $45 annual membership) and Drugstore.com. There were
> exceptions to the "online is cheaper" rule. Clickpharmacy.com and
> CVS.com had prices higher than mass merchants such as Wal-Mart and
> Target. 
> 
> The magazine also surveyed more than 32,000 of its readers and found
> independent mom-and-pop pharmacies provide the best service. 
> 
> Overall, more than 85 percent of customers at the independents were
> satisfied with their experience, compared to 58 percent at the chain
> drugstores. 
> 
> You don't get any face time with pharmacists when shopping on the Web.
> But many online pharmacies make it easy to e-mail questions to
> pharmacists.